Window dressing is for dummies

If the sceptics in the care home sector are to be believed, consultation is the new yoga; it helps you to get in touch with yourself â€“ and yourself alone. This jaundiced view is, they argue, the product of years spent watching decision makers going though the motions of seeking their opinions on this or that proposal, without having the slightest intention of doing more than filing them in the shredder. True enough, many consultations do appear to have been constructed with the thinly disguised aim of discouraging any response which remotely resembles analysis; contributions are often limited to a simple yes or no, or at best, a multiple choice of predetermined options. Where space is provided for additional comments, it will cunningly ensure that only the use of a microscopic type size will allow more than a monosyllabic answer. Although it is self-evident that such enquiries cannot be effective unless they strike every section of the target audience, lack of penetration remains the most serious barrier to